Police are investigating a new report about a phone call from a senior police officer.
According to a report by Channel A 'News A' on the 15th, there is new information regarding the 'birthday' phone call between F.T Island's Jonghun and a senior investigative officer at the Yongsan Police Station.
According to an anonymous source, police officer 'A' made a phone call to Choi Jonghun around the same time the singer was involved in a DUI accident in 2016. The police officer 'A' had claimed that "he made the phone call to assess customer experience as was routinely required" but the whistleblower claims "that those kinds of calls are generally made to victims, not to the alleged suspects in the case."
A spokesperson from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency released a statement about the report and stated, "After questioning officer 'A', it appears the call was related to an initiative planned by the Yongsan Accident Investigation Department to improve the public's satisfaction with the Yongsan police department. The phone call to Choi Jonghun was merely to check whether he had encountered any issues or discomfort during the investigation process. Officer 'A' doesn't remember precise details of the call as this is a routine call but says if he called the same day as Jonghun's birthday, he most likely called to wish the singer a happy birthday because he would've noted so on Jonghun's resident registration number."
He continued, "We have obtained cell phones, accounts, and all the work-related computer systems of the head of the Yongsan Police Station and the department head of the Accident Investigative Division and we're in the process of analyzing the information via digital forensics. We will forward the case to prosecution once we complete the investigation."
The former F.T Island member had bragged in the infamous 'tokbang' chat room that included Seungri, Jung Joon Young and more that he had received a phone call from a senior police officer wishing him "happy birthday" right after the accident. During investigation on April 4th, Jonghun confessed that he had bribed the police officer at the scene of the drunk driving incident with 2 million won (~$1,700). The police officer confirmed the bribery incident but alleged that he had rejected the offer.
Additional Source: Newsis
Unofficial transcript
Ring ring
Jonghun: Hello?
police: May I speak with Choi Jonghun?
Jonghun: Speaking.
police: I’m calling from the Yongsan Police Station.
Jonghun: Whatever it is, I didn’t do it. Call Seungri.
police: No sir, I’m calling because I’m conducting a customer satisfaction survey about your DUI. Do you have time to answer some questions?
Jonghun: Do I need my attorney?
police: No, these are just routine questions.
Jonghun: Go ahead.
police: We will use a scale from 1 to 5, where 5 is “excellent” and 1 “unsatisfactory.”
Using this scale, how would you rate the officers’ professionalism?
Jonghun: A “1”
police: care to elaborate?
Jonghun: he was too professional, wouldn’t let me bribe him.
police: Oookay. How would you rate their communication skills?
Jonghun: A “1”
police: care to elaborate?
Jonghun: they wouldn’t listen when I told them the handcuffs were too tight.
police: well, it happens. One final question. How would you rate the speed in which everything was handled?
Jonghun: A “1”
police: care to elaborate?
Jonghun: I tried running away and the officer was TOO fast.
police: Oookay. Finally, I see from your report that it’s your birthday. Happy birthday sir.
Jonghun: silence...
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